UPADTED: 7:04am – DJ Forbes departs the Sevens scene a happy man.
After 11 years at the forefront of the All Blacks Sevens team, Forbes has announced his retirement. Forbes says with a lot of changes to the current programme on the horizon, the timing is right.
“Just having that off-season and pre-season this year, been having to do all the kids’ lunches and dropoffs and pickups and the weekend footy, it struck home. So I think the time is right now to let the boys forge their own pathway.”
The All Blacks Sevens team will have a centralized programme based in Mount Maunganui for the first time ahead of the next world series.
Forbes says having a centralised programme is where the team will get the most dividends going forward.
“It’s all been about us being together for one week and then we go and play overseas. But now being centralised we’re going to get massive gains out of that.”
Eight of the top teams in the world are already centralised including South Africa, England and Fiji.
Forbes says it provides them with a great opportunity to progress.
“With a couple of pinnacle events next year, I definitely think it’s the right timing and everything’s set up moving forward.”
A decision hasn’t yet been made around whether the World Series winning Black Ferns’ Sevens programme will follow suit.
-NewstalkZB
